Automatic sliding door operating device for guided vehicle

Abstract

A tracked transportation system uses an automatic car door opening and closing system. The car door or one panel of a two-panel door carries a lever on which is a rear abutment member designed to roll along an outside surface at the bottom of the car. This member enters a housing when the door is closed. The door is closed by holding it as the car moves slowly along a platform, by means of a hook attached to the lever.

There is claimed: 
     
       1. Transportation system employing at least one car provided with at least one sliding door, comprising means for locking said at least one door in a closed position, means for unlocking said at least one door adapted to be operated as said car passes a predetermined location, wherein said locking means comprise a lever pivoted to said at least one door, a rear abutment member on said lever adapted to come into contact with a surface of said car, spring means urging said lever into contact with said surface via said rear abutment member, and a housing in said surface adapted to receive said rear abutment member when said at least one door is closed, and wherein said unlocking means comprise means for turning said lever against the action of said spring means in the direction tending to disengage said rear abutment member from said housing when said car reaches a location at which said at least one door is required to be unlocked, and means for securing said at least one door until said locking means are operated when said car reaches a location at which said at least one door is required to be closed. 
     
     
       2. Transportation system according to claim 1, wherein said door securing means comprise a mobile part adapted to be moved by a reaction force exerted on it by said at least one door, means for immobilizing said mobile part by opposing said reaction force under normal operating conditions and emergency stop and/or alarm triggering means adapted to be operated by said mobile part when it has moved a predetermined amount against the action of said immobilization means. 
     
     
       3. Transportation system according to claim 1, wherein said lever turning means comprise a longitudinal member serving as a cam disposed facing the path of said car and said lever carries a front abutment member adapted to cooperate with said cam. 
     
     
       4. Transportation system according to claim 1, wherein said door retaining means comprise a first operating hook fastened to said lever and adapted to project laterally when said rear abutment member is in contact with said surface, in which position it is adapted to cooperate with retaining means disposed at a location where said at least one door is required to be closed, and to occupy a retracted position when said rear abutment member is in said housing. 
     
     
       5. Transportation system according to claim 4, further comprising a pivoting closing mechanism adapted to be located at an embarkation point, a retaining hook on said pivoting closing mechanism, spring means adapted to urge said pivoting closing mechanism towards the path of said car, and a reference roller on said pivoting closing mechanism adapted to contact a track on the side of said car when moving past said embarkation point so as to hold said retaining hook at a predetermined distance from said car so that it is enabled to come into contact with and retain said operating hook. 
     
     
       6. Transportation system according to claim 1, wherein said at least one door comprises two panels adapted to move in respective opposite directions and means linking said panels together so that they move symmetrically relative to a door opening in said car. 
     
     
       7. Transportation system according to claim 6, wherein said locking means comprise a lever pivoted to said at least one door, a rear abutment member on said lever adapted to come into contact with a surface of said car, spring means urging said lever into contact with said surface via said rear abutment member, and a housing in said surface adapted to receive said rear abutment member when said at least one door is closed, and wherein said unlocking means comprise means for turning said lever against the action of said spring means in the direction tending to disengage said rear abutment member from said housing when said car reaches a location at which said at least one door is required to be unlocked, further comprising a respective lever pivoted to each panel, a respective operating hook on each of said levers and a respective rear abutment member on each of said levers adapted to come into contact with a surface of said car in such a way that the respective operating hook projects laterally, respective spring means operative on each of said levers and adapted to urge it in a direction to bring said rear abutment member into contact with said surface of said car, respective housings in said surface of said car adapted to receive said rear abutment members on said levers when said panels are in the door closed position so as to retract said hooks and double-lock said door, means for pivoting said levers against the action of said spring means in a direction to cause said hooks to emerge and release said rear abutment members from said housings, said pivoting means being responsive to said car reaching a location where it is required to unlock said door, a first retaining hook disposed at an embarkation point and adapted to cooperate selectively with said first operating hook according to the direction of movement of said car in order to close said door, and a second retaining hook disposed at a disembarkation point and adapted to cooperate selectively with said second operating lock according to the direction of movement of said car in order to open said door. 
     
     
       8. Transportation system according to claim 7, comprising a pivoting closing mechanism carrying said first retaining hook and a pivoting opening mechanism carrying said second retaining hook, said closing and opening mechanisms being respectively disposed at an embarkation point and a disembarkation point, respective spring means urging said mechanisms towards the path of said car, and a respective reference roller on each mechanism adapted to come into contact with a track on the side of said car when moving past the respective embarkation or disembarkation point to hold the respective retaining hook at a predetermined distance from said car in a position such that it is enabled to come into contact with said first or second operating hook. 
     
     
       9. Transportation system according to claim 8, comprising a cam on said car, a roller on said pivoting opening mechanism adapted to come into contact with said cam so that said mechanism is temporarily pushed back when said first operating hook passes said second retaining hook. 
     
     
       10. Transportation system according to claim 9, wherein said roller is said reference roller on said mechanism and said cam is attached to said track on the side of said car. 
     
     
       11. A transportation system including at least one car movable under a path of movement, said car having at least one sliding door slideable between open and closed positions and a door operating system comprising means for opening the door and means for closing the door, said means for closing the door comprising door retaining means disposed at a location along the path of movement of the car where the door is to be closed, said door retaining means being cooperable with first means on said door for opposing movement of the door relative to said location until the door reaches the closed position, and means for selectively locking and unlocking the door when the door is in said closed position. 
     
     
       12. A door operating system according to claim 11, wherein said door retaining means comprises a mobile part movable in response to a reaction force exerted by said door, means for normally holding said mobile part against movement, emergency stop and/or alarm triggering means adapted to be operated by said mobile part in response to a predetermined displacement thereof against the action of said means for normally holding said mobile part against movement. 
     
     
       13. A door operating system according to claim 11, wherein said door retaining means comprises a friction engagement member and means for urging said friction engagement member against an outside surface of said door. 
     
     
       14. A door operating system according to claim 11, wherein said means for opening said door comprises an engagement roller adapted to be rotated at a speed such that the tangential speed of its surface is greater than the speed of said car as it passes said roller and spring means for urging said roller towards an outside surface of said door. 
     
     
       15. A door operating system according to claim 11, wherein said at least one door comprises two panels adapted to move in respective opposite directions and means linking said panels together so that they move symmetrically relative to a door opening in said car. 
     
     
       16. A door operating system according to claim 15, wherein said linking means comprise a respective anchor structure fastened to each of said panels, direction-changing means on said car at a distance from said door opening, and two linking members each having one end attached to the anchor structure on one of said panels, extending around the respective direction-changing means and having its other end attached to the anchor structure on the other of said panels. 
     
     
       17. A door operating system according to claim 11, wherein said means for selectively locking and unlocking comprises a lever pivoted to said door, a rear abutment on said lever adapted to come into contact with a surface of said car, spring means coacting with said lever for urging said rear abutment into contact with said car surface, a recess in said surface for receiving said rear abutment when said door is in said closed position, and releasing means cooperable with said lever for turning said lever against the action of said spring means in a direction tending to disengage said rear abutment from said recess. 
     
     
       18. A door operating system according to claim 17, wherein said releasing means comprises a longitudinal member defining a cam, said lever having a front abutment member cooperable with said cam. 
     
     
       19. A door operating system according to claim 17, wherein said first means cooperable with said door retaining means comprises a first operating hook fastened to said lever adapted to project laterally when said rear abutment member is in contact with said surface and adapted to occupy a retracted position when said rear abutment member is received in said recess. 
     
     
       20. A door operating system according to claim 19, wherein said first operating hook is mounted on a pivoting closing mechanism, the first mentioned location being at an embarkation point, spring means urging said pivoting closing mechanism towards said car at said embarkation point, and a reference roller on said pivoting closing mechanism cooperable with a track on a side of said car when it moves past said embarkation point so as to position said retaining hook at a predetermined distance from said car so as to contact and retain said operating hook. 
     
     
       21. A door operating system according to claim 20, wherein said pivoting closing mechanism is disposed beneath the lip of an embarkation platform. 
     
     
       22. A door operating system according to claim 19, wherein said door comprises first and second panels movable in respective opposite directions for opening and closing a door opening in said car and means linking said first and second panels together for movement symmetrically relative to said door opening in said car, the first mentioned lever being provided on said first panel and a second said lever being provided on said second panel, said location where said door is to be closed being an embarkation point, said door retaining means comprising a first retaining hook selectively cooperable with said first operating hook on said first lever depending on the direction of movement of said car, and a second retaining hook being provided at a disembarkation point selectively cooperable with a second operating hook on said second lever depending on the direction of movement of said car. 
     
     
       23. A door operating system according to claim 22, wherein said first retaining hook is carried on a pivoting closing mechanism and said second retaining hook is carried on a pivoting opening mechanism, respective spring means urging said closing and opening mechanisms toward said car at the respective embarkation or disembarkation point, a reference roller provided on each of said mechanisms cooperable with a track on the side of said car when it moves past the respective embarkation or disembarkation point for holding the respective first or second retaining hook at a predetermined distance from said car to enable contact with the respective first or second operating hook. 
     
     
       24. A door opening system according to claim 41, wherein each of said levers has a front abutment member, said releasing means comprising means for pivoting each of first and second levers to free their rear abutment members from respective housings including a longitudinal cam attached to said pivoting opening mechanism and cooperable with said front abutment members. 
     
     
       25. A door operating system according to claim 23, wherein said pivoting opening and closing mechanisms are disposed beneath the lip of respective disembarkation and embarkation platforms. 
     
     
       26. A door operating system according to claim 23, further comprising a cam on said car, roller means on said pivoting opening mechanism cooperable with said cam for pushing back said first operating hook to enable said first operating hook to freely move past said second retaining hook. 
     
     
       27. A door operating system according to claim 26, wherein said roller means on said pivoting opening mechanism is defined by said reference roller, and said cam is attached to said track on the side of said car. 
     
     
       28. A door opening system according to claim 23, further comprising a respective mobile assembly carrying each of said retaining hooks and movable in a direction substantially parallel to the path of movement of the car, a spring urging each of said assemblies in a predetermined position in which the respective retaining hook cooperates with the corresponding operating hook under normal operating conditions. 
     
     
       29. A door operating system according to claim 28, further comprising alarm and/or emergency braking control means responsive to movement of the respective mobile assemblies against the action of the respective spring. 
     
     
       30. A door operating system according to claim 28, wherein each of said retaining hooks is pivoted to a respective one of said mobile assemblies, and further comprising classically deformable abutment means disposed between each of said retaining hooks and the respective mobile assembly for permitting the retaining hook to be disengaged from the corresponding operating hook when the mobile assembly reaches a limit position remote from said predetermined position. 
     
     
       31. A door operating system according to claim 30, comprising sensing means fixed to said pivoting closing mechanism downstream of said first retaining hook for commanding disenablement of the transporting system in response to one of said operating hooks in its unlocked position causing one of said retaining hooks to pivot. 
     
     
       32. A transportation system including at least one car movable along a path of movement, said car having at least one door including first and second panels linked together for sliding displacement towards and away from each other between closed and open positions, and a door operating system comprising means for closing the door and means for opening the door, said means for closing the door comprising a door retaining means at a first location along the path of movement of the car where the door is to be closed, said first door retaining means being cooperable with first operating means on said first panel for opposing movement of said first panel relative to said first location until the panels of the door reach the closed position, said means for opening the door comprising second retaining means at a second location along the path of movement where the door is to be open, said second retaining means being cooperable with second operating means on said second panel for opposing movement of said second panel relative to said second location until said panels of the door reach the open position, and means for selectively locking and unlocking the panels when said panels are in the closed position.